As a high school teacher, I quickly became deaf to the oh-so-common complaint, "It's not fair!" I did my best to be fair, but it simply wasn't possible to accomplish fairness in every situation. My mantra became "life is not fair, but what matters most is not the unfairness, but what we do after that." They never liked that answer.

I don't like it either, especially the older I get. I don't like it that my metabolism has slowed, making it harder than ever for weight to come off. I don't like it that it takes more exercise, not less, to stay in shape. I really don't like it that my face is sprouting all sorts of annoying black hair in places I can't easily see. It's not fair.

When I catch myself having this reaction—and it happens regularly—I am reminded of what I used to tell my students. No, it's not fair, but now what do I do?

It's like the student who didn't want to do an assignment because it was hard, so he told his teacher he had dyslexia. She gently replied, "Okay,. I get it. You have a learning disability. But the assignment is still there and needs to be done, so what do you do now?"

What do we do when it's not fair? It's easy to quit and employ whatever excuse applies to the moment. But that's the easy way out, the path of least resistance. We will never reach the goal or attain our dreams if we allow the obstacle of "not fair" to stop us.

Whether it's a mountain or an anthill, we have to move beyond it—even if we can't see ahead, even if it feels all wrong, and especially if everybody else says it's not fair. We must persevere because it's the path to our dreams.

Do you have a big "not fair" standing in your way? Only our perfect Lord is fair. However, He is willing to give us the strength we need to work through any situation with grace.

(Photo courtesy of morguefile and jppi.)

(For more devotions, visit us at www.christiandevotions.us.)

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Mary Pat Johns

Mary Pat Johns is currently a Bible teacher at Faith Family, a mega-church in Victoria, Texas. Her teaching venues include assignments for ladies’ Bible study and assisting her husband with their weekly Understanding God class. She also serves as an instructor for Destiny Bible Institute. A mother and grandmother, she lives with her husband and their miniature dachshund Ike, who runs the show.